Alec Hardison
History Growing up in the foster system, Alec Hardison knows two things: computers and technology. A geek of the first order, Hardison (as he is usually called) handles the team's electronics and monitors the team's communications through modified bone conduction earbuds. He also modified the team's cellphones, which the team can use for a variety uses. While not a grifter like Sophie, as a hacker (and through his foster grandmother), Hardison has developed excellent social engineering skills. Always quick with a joke or snide remark, his somewhat lack of maturity has caused the team problems, but he always comes through in the clutch. Hardison's natural charm allows him to get along easy with most people. His relationships with team vary. He has special relationships with two members of his team. With Eliot Spencer, it's more of a friendly rivalry similar to that of brothers. With Parker, it's more akin to a crush. Whether Parker truly reciprocates remains to be seen. Hardison is not to be underestimated whether in cyberspace or the real world. It is through Hardison's expertise that Leverage Consulting & Associates gains the technologies around the earbuds and the cell phones. Hardison is also the handler of the Lucille, the team's van. Skills *Hacking - He gathers all the recon material they need for the case (S02EP06) and so because of this he usually does the mission briefings for each job. He erases the electronic paper trail so they cannot be tracked after each job and is able to track and trace anybody as long as they leave one as well (S01EP04). Has taps into all the banking and CIA systems, regularly uses computer viruses, managed to hack the San Lorenzo email system to send a message to every citizen in just an hour (S03EP16), and hacked into the White House email in 3 days (S02EP01). On the job, he is usually behind the scenes, operating from Lucille, as the main contact amongst the other Leverage members - analysing footage, monitoring comms, scanning police frequencies... (S02EP07). *Electronics *Social Network engineering *Limited Pickpocketing skills (while the team was held prisoner inside a hospital, Hardison was able to lift a cell phone from one of the doctors, he was also able to use a claw to lift two sets of car keys from U.S. Marshals' pockets.) *A pedestrian appreciation for art, as he is an amateur painter, but confesses that he is not well versed in "Dead Guy Art". *Improvisation, Hardison was an attendee of Second City in Chicago. *Plays the violin. He was a very good violinist when he was a teenager, and he gained standing ovations after his performance in 'The Scheherazade Job'. *Grifting (with the help of Sophie Devereaux) - Not a good grifter because he tends to oversell himself, as his titular role in The Ice Man Job where he overdoes it and ends up kidnapped by the Russian mobsters instead. *Bomb making *Forger (as seen in "The King George Job") *Creating CIA level cover stories and IDs - these are so extensive that Parker’s alias Alice White gets called up for jury duty! (1×11). *Very financial savvy, he earned the team a windfall by buying the right shares and even more than expected because he knows how to play the markets (1×01). According to Kung Fu Monkey, he was the financial mastermind in complicated insurance scams which in turn led to him meeting Nate. *Chemistry - he knew enough to create the miracle that made the statue cry in the Miracle Job (S01EP04) *People Skills - He attributes his people skills to being raised a Jehovah's Witness and going door to door to speak with strangers when he was young. This experience paid off at least once when he won a losing case with a touching closing statement while pretending to be a lawyer. Weaknesses *Lack of maturity and focus *Overconfidence at times and a lack of confidence when the team needs him the most. *Completely useless with firearms *While Hardison can throw a punch or two, he is the least physical of the men on the Leverage Team. He is even out matched by Parker. Relationships with Other Characters Overall Hardison's overconfidence comes out in Season 3 as gains experience with the team. He is unique in the sense that he is put into multiple situations where he had to be a thief (Parker) and a grifter (Sophie). This leads him to believe he is ready for the next level, planning for his own crew. Parker Hardison often works closest with Parker, as their two skill sets compliment one another. As a result, Hardison has developed a crush on Parker. Parker is either ignorant or oblivious to this. (In "The Stork Job", he expressed some of his feelings toward her in the description of the Leverage Team, "We're more than just a team." In "The First David Job", she makes out with Hardison to elude physical security, which leaves him even more confused as to her relationship, as she doesn't mentions it again.) Season 3 has definitely shown that the two have become very close, and now Parker has shown she has feelings for Hardison. At the end of "The Double Blind Job", after a feeble attempt at trying to express her feelings for him, Hardison made it clear to her that he will be there when she is ready. In "The Big Bang Job", Parker tells Hardison she is in the mood for Pretzels, referencing their conversation at the end of "The Double Blind Job". In "The Long Way Down Job", it seems like they might be dating when Parker said, "I should meet your nana." At the end, he said, "No, don't." Sophie Devereaux Sophie is a teammate to Hardison. It is clear to him that she and Nathan have a deeper relationship so he respects her as much as he respects Nathan. Over the years, Sophie has slowly been teaching Alec the art of the grifter, something which he has taken pride in. Nathan Ford As the team leader, Hardison respects Nathan, as much as a son respects his father. Given that Hardison really didn't know his father, this relationship is important to him. When Nathan rebukes Hardison in "The Mile High Job", Hardison is challenged, which eventually helps him save the day. In "The Nigerian Job", Hardison is quick to realize that Nathan is a good influence on him. Also, Hardison is Nate's landlord after he buys the apartment building used for Leverage Headquarters in the second season. Eliot Spencer At first, Hardison and Eliot are combative, as both of their disciplines are opposite to the other. (Hardison is the covert backdoor electronic type, while Eliot is the physical and less subversive operative.) Eventually, the two see the need for the other, and when they work together, good things happen. This does not reduce their sibling-like rivalry through. In this case, Eliot often takes the role of the older brother. Trivia * According to Sterling's people, Hardison is wanted in Iceland. * After Leverage Consulting & Associates moved to Boston, Hardison frequently used a van which he named Lucille. It was destroyed in the episode "The Three Strikes Job" as a diversion. Afterward, he was very mad at Nate, saying that he killed Lucille. * Has a residence in Chicago which was used initially by the Leverage Team as a base of operations in The Nigerian Job. * Instead of going to the Prom, Hardison hacked into the Bank of Iceland, to pay for his Nana's medical bills. (This is probably why he is wanted there.) * Hardison is a fan of various genres of Science Fiction, making references to: Star Trek, Ghostbusters, Doctor Who, and Star Wars. He was caught impersonating Mick Jagger in a hotel room with 3 Leia wannabes holding lightsabers and tried to use the Jedi mind trick to escape (S01EP01). He tries to get Eliot to use a code that references odd numbered Star Trek films as meaning everything is ok, and references to even numbered Star Treks meaning something is wrong. He used Ralph O'Khan (Wrath of Khan) to hint to Eliot he was in danger (S02EP03). Fan of Doctor Who – watches the show regularly (S01EP05), also uses the names of past Doctor Who actors as aliases, like Tom Baker and Sarah Jane (S01EP08). * Has been confused by fans for being the tailback for the Nebraska Cornhuskers. * Favorite beverage is Squeeze Orange Soda, and his favorite snack is Gummy Frogs. * Is religious but is non-denominational. * Has a dog named Megabyte (Reboot reference). * Played violin until he was 14, then he picked up computers. * Has aspirations to run his own crew; however, Nate thinks he lacks the quality to do whatever it takes to make his crew work (S03EP04). * According to Parker, he touches his chin once every 2.5 minutes. * Has a fear of heights (S01EP01) or at the very least jumping off heights with just a harness. * His way of inflicting revenge on a person is sending them 1000 porno magazines (S01EP01) * Unbelievable rubbish shot, evidenced when he shot the paintball gun (S01EP04) and when he accidently shot out a car's engine when he said he was aiming for the person's leg (S01EP10). * Enjoys playing World of Warcraft - in fact, he enjoys it so much he overslept for a job because he was up the previous night playing the new extension pack (S01EP09). * Has a tell in Rock-Paper-Scissors, according to Eliot (S01EP09). * Most susceptible to hypnosis, according to Sophie (S03EP04). * Owns a Green Lantern action figure * Is known to blow large sums of money on a whim. Bought the red Ferrari (mentioned below) just for a bigshot character he was potraying in a grift (S02EP08). Also bought Nate's entire appartment complex, becoming his landlord, just so he could move in his equipment against Nate's wishes. Vehicles * His personal vehicle is a Black Hyundai Genesis sedan, it is equipped with GPS tracking. * In "The Ice Man Job", Hardison buys a red Ferrari Links * http://www.tnt.tv/series/leverage/characters/?contentId=41356 Hardison